Tara Lipinski has an inspirational message for “anyone who feels like the path to their goals is neither easy nor straight.”
The Olympian-turned-analyst posted a photo of herself on Instagram in the press box overlooking one of the ice skating rinks at the 2018 Olympic Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, just ahead of Friday’s opening ceremony.
She reminded her fans to never give up, recounting her dreams of first becoming a champion ice skater and then a sports commentator.
“My dream of winning an Olympic gold medal wasn’t without hitting countless obstacles and refusing to give in,” wrote Lipinski, 35. “My next dream was to be sitting in this very chair- a dream that’s been a decade in the making. I knew I wanted to be a broadcaster but didn’t know where to start. My dad said ‘Why do you pick such difficult goals to go after....well you are my daughter and I know you will make it happen.’”
She then explained how she had to start from the bottom, learning the ins and outs of sports broadcasting through studying and hard work. “…Today I’m about to walk through the door that leads me onto one of the biggest stages I could dream of. I am ready. It’s a surreal feeling after twenty years of accomplishing my first big dream, I’m about to realize my second big dream.”
Lipinski became the youngest individual Olympic gold medalist at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. She became a commentator and analyst at the Sochi Winter Games in 2014. Lipinski, alongside two-time Olympian Jonny Weir, will serve as NBC commentators in PyeongChang.